Augmented reality introduced to the most digital of regions

INDE Appshaker brought to Macau a taste of the products that they create

As we walk past Soho restaurants at the  City of Dreams, the big screen instantly captures one’s attention. Indeed, it’s not every day that we get to be next to a dinosaur, or see ourselves surrounded by penguins and whales. They move around us and we are left with no option but to interact with them. It’s augmented reality brought to Macau by INDE Appshaker, a digital creative agency dedicated to building immersive and interactive experiences.
Alex Poulson, INDE App-
shaker’s founding partner and CEO, acknowledged how difficult it is to simply explain the systems they build over the table. This is about experiencing and interacting with augmented reality. “If all I tell you is that we position you next to dinosaurs, it’s a very difficult thing to do. So we are here with the UK Trade & Investment, under the GREAT Campaign, and they’ve agreed that [demonstrating] a system and having a meeting inside the actual system itself [is ideal],” he said.
The “Britain is Great” campaign is intended to showcase the best the UK has to offer. Under this initiative, several delegations have visited Macau this year to further business ties with the MSAR.
Over the past weekend, INDE Appshaker brought to Macau a taste of the products that they build.
They profile systems around augmented reality, namely broadcasted augmented reality, where they set up a big screen immersion system; a product showcasing augmented mobile reality where a simple iPad can help us see 3D characters just by pointing the device at a book; or even an architecture toll, recently launched, that lets people enter 3D house models in real time – a product designed mainly to address real estate companies.
It’s no surprise that by providing people with these surreal experiences, we’re in for some interesting responses. “We generate funny reactions because we put people next to things they wouldn’t be normally next to. We’ve had a man coming back here – I think around 10 to 15 times now – who keeps coming back to try to figure out what’s going on and every time he arrives, he stares at the screen and looks very confused, then leaves and comes back 20 minutes later,” Poulson recalled.
Mr Poulson said that INDE Appshaker’s job focuses on creating experiences that are fresh and new, using different technologies. “We have always had one overriding goal: to ensure whatever we create is immersive and interactive,” he stressed.
Their main mission is to place people inside spaces they would normally never be inside. It’s “the magic element added to the experience,” said Mr Poulson. “And the big screen systems have that effect on people. You have a six year old girl watching alongside a 60 year old man and they will have the same look of genuine enjoyment on their faces.”
The digital creative agency first worked in advertising for Coca Cola, BBC, and National Geographic. But INDE Appshaker was also approached by museums interested in using their systems to educate visitors on various topics. “The education sector saw this technology as a powerful tool for teaching children about history, so that’s where we see a lot of potential,” Mr Poulson acknowledged.
“Traditionally we purchased books and we kind of moved onto the digital age, consuming content through things like an iPad. The next stage is augmented reality and virtual reality, which is able to transport people to completely different worlds, whether it will be a virtual reality content that’s broadcasted everywhere in the world all the way through being able to view 3D information about particular animals or places. The potential is endless, effectively,” he continued.
Although INDE Appshaker has previously done business in Asia, it’s the first time they’ve brought their systems to Hong Kong and Macau. Being one of the most digitally engaged and technologically-savvy regions in the world, Asia has huge potential for augmented reality products.
With offices in the Middle East, North America, Europe and a small operation in Australia, Appshaker seems ready to conquer the Asian market.
Mr Poulson said they’ve held talks with potential local partners in Hong Kong and Macau, thanks to the UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), which creates opportunities for British companies to achieve success abroad. “We see it as an incredibly important market, but it’s a market that we would need to explore with local partners to understand the different businesses,” he acknowledged.
As a relatively small business, INDE Appshaker is looking for further investment allowing them to scale, and they see Macau “as an obvious fit.”
Given previous talks with prospective partners in the region, they hope to open an office in Hong Kong in a near future, said Appshaker’s founding partner.
Mr Alex Poulson has a rich educational and professional background. As a History graduate, he moved into journalism, working as a journalist for fashion and design magazines in London. He then pursued work in advertising, later creating an experiential advertising agency. “I began to focus on live events and experience and that naturally led us into these kind of systems, because we were trying to create live visual experiences,” he said.